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Montana 2026 ballot measures
As of December 31, 2025, zero statewide ballot measures were certified for the ballot in Montana on November 3, 2026.
Potential
| Name | Type | Subject | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana CI-129, 2% Annual Increase in Primary Residence Property Valuation Assessment Limit Initiative (2026) | Property taxes | Limit the annual increase for property valuation assessments of primary residences to 2% each year | |
| Montana CI-130, 2% Annual Increase in Real Property Valuation Assessment Limit Initiative (2026) | Property taxes | Limit the annual increase to 2% each year for all real property valuations | |
| Montana CI-131, Nonpartisan Supreme and District Court Elections Initiative (2026) | Judiciary | Require that elections for the Montana Supreme Court and Montana District Courts to be nonpartisan in the Montana Constitution | |
| Montana CI-132, Require Nonpartisan Judicial Elections Initiative (2026) | Judiciary | Add a new section to the Montana Constitution to require that all judicial elections are nonpartisan |
Getting on the ballot
Citizen initiatives
In Montana, initiated constitutional amendments, initiated state statutes, and veto referendums can be put on the ballot through citizen signature petitions.
Petitioners were required to file the requisite number of signatures by June 21, 2024, for initiated state statues and initiated constitutional amendments. The law requires signatures for veto referendums to be submitted by six months after the legislature that passed the targeted bill adjourns.
Citizens were required to file at least 60,359 valid signatures for initiated constitutional amendments and at least 30,180 valid signatures for initiated state statutes and veto referendums.
To qualify a measure for the ballot in Montana, supporters submitted signatures directly to county officials, who are responsible for preliminary verification before passing the petition sheets on to the secretary of state by July 19, 2024. Thus, the status of some measures can remain unknown for some time after the signature submission deadline.
Legislative referrals
The Montana Legislature may refer statutes or constitutional amendments to the ballot. Any member of the legislature can propose a statute or amendment. A simple majority is required in both chambers of the state legislature to place a legislatively referred state statute on the ballot. A two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required of all members of the legislature during one legislative session for the Montana State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. Since Montana has 150 legislators (100 Representatives and 50 Senators), at least 100 members must vote in favor of a constitutional amendment for it to pass. Section 5 of Article III of the Montana Constitution, along with Montana Code 5-4-301, provides that the governor cannot veto legislatively referred state statutes or stop them from appearing on the ballot. Constitutional amendments do not require the governor's signature.
Historical facts
- See also: List of Montana ballot measures
Montana statewide ballot measures
In Montana, a total of 104 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2024. Sixty (60) ballot measures were approved, and 44 ballot measures were defeated.
| Montana statewide ballot measures, 1985-2024 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number | Annual average | Annual minimum | Annual maximum | Approved | Defeated | ||
| # | % | # | % | ||||
Ballot initiative certification rates
The following table shows the rate of certification for ballot initiatives in Montana between 2010 and 2024:
Not on the ballot
| Name | Type | Subject | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana Child Pornography and Criminal Racketeering Amendment (2026) | Criminal trials | Allow the state and local government to outlaw and punish distribution or receipt of child pornography | |
| Montana Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment (2026) | Citizenship voting | State that only an inhabitant of the state, rather than every inhabitant of the state, who is a U.S. citizen, may vote | |
| Montana Definition of Person Amendment (2026) | Constitutional rights; Abortion | Define the word 'person' to include "all members of mankind at any stage of development, beginning at the stage of fertilization or conception, regardless of age, health, level of functioning, or condition of dependency" | |
| Montana Three-Fifths Supermajority Vote Requirement for Constitutional Initiatives Amendment (2026) | Supermajority | Require a three-fifths vote of the electorate rather than a simple majority vote to approve citizen-initiated constitutional amendments | |
| Montana Three-Fifths Supermajority Vote Requirement for Constitutional Referrals Amendment (2026) | Supermajority | Require a three-fifths vote of the electorate rather than a simple majority vote to approve legislatively referred constitutional amendments |
See also
- 2024 ballot measures
- List of Montana ballot measures
- Laws governing the initiative process in Montana
- Montana Legislature
See also
- 2026 ballot measures
- List of Montana ballot measures
- History of Initiative & Referendum in Montana
- Montana signature requirements
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